Ex-kidnapping victims: Jayme Closs needs space, time to heal

CHICAGO (AP) — Former kidnapping victims say 13-year-old Jayme Closs must be allowed to discuss her ordeal on her own terms as she tries to recover from her traumatic experiences.

Jayme was found alive Thursday after approaching a stranger nearly three months after police say a man abducted her from her northern Wisconsin home after fatally shooting her parents. A 21-year-old suspect was arrested shortly after her rescue.

Katie Beers was 10 when she was rescued from a bunker in New York after 17 days. Now 36, Beers says one thing that helped her recover was that “nobody forced me to talk about what happened.”

Elizabeth Smart was missing for nine months after being kidnapped from her Salt Lake City home in 2002. She cautions even questions that seem harmless could be hurtful.

Beers and Smart say Jayme should be able to live a happy and fulfilling life as long as she’s surrounded by a supportive and loving family.